Crawling in the Dark
by Sixth Child
Summary: One-shot. Kouichi has a dream that leads him into deeper thoughts about things.


Crawling in the Dark

One-shot

By Sixth Child

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon, that I don't. 

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Running. Chasing. After a far-off dream. 

"Come back!" Kouichi held out his hand as he ran and ran after this mysterious shadow. It was moving quickly, as if mocking him with its speed. _A patch of shadow? It must be something else. _Kouichi thought. _It almost looks like… a person. _A snickering face lingered upon this shadow phantom, as it gained speed. Floating noiselessly towards no destination, no goal.

"Please!! Come back! Wait… for me…" Kouichi panted as he found himself falling, down into nothingness. "Help me!"

The figure's smirk suddenly turned into a worried expression. It held out its hand to try to catch the falling boy. But the shadow was gone, disappeared like a morning breeze. The light revealed the person who was attempting to catch Kouichi. "Kouji!?"

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Kouichi shot up in his bed, sweat paving his face like cement. _What happened? _Hr thought, his mind suddenly blank. _The dream… that's right. I had a dream… about Kouji. I was falling… what does that mean? Maybe it was just a dream, nothing to be phased about. But still…._

"Kouichi! It's time to wake up and get dressed for school!" Kouichi heard his mother call from the kitchen. 

"I'm awake!" He called back, throwing off the navy sheets, and heading towards the bathroom. He slammed the bathroom door behind him, subconsciously, his mind on something else.

After he was dressed, Kouichi went to brush his teeth. He opened the cherry drawer and grabbed his green toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste. He held out the toothbrush, and attempted to apply the white toothpaste. He was shaking. Kouichi dropped the delicate toothbrush into the sink; it's noise echoing in the lonely bathroom. He gripped the edges of the countertop, and stared heavily into the mirror. "What's wrong with me!?" He yelled to his reflection. "Why can't I just… Why can't I just tell him!? Why? Am I really that pathetic? It's because of _him. _It's _his _fault that I'm this way." Kouichi held out his fist and hit the mirror with it, hit is own reflection. 

Shards of broken glass dug into his knuckles, but Kouichi didn't feel them. How can one feel pain if they already are hurting so much, that it's unbearable? That you can't even sleep at night, without thinking of him? Without dreaming of him? That you can still manage to make it through the day, even though your ready to collapse? How can you remain living?

There's no reason to. No reason to be alone, no reason to live. _No reason? _Why should you suffer so much for another? Shouldn't _they _be the one who is suffering? They are the one who don't deserve to live. _No, that's wrong. I want him to live. Want him to go on being happy. And he is obviously happy without me. I'm not the one who should remain living. _

Kouichi sat down on the floor, knuckles white from clutching his head in frustration. _What should I do? What should I do? I can't take it anymore…._ Kouichi held his head tighter, pulling his knees to his chest. "I can't take it anymore. I can't take it anymore. I can't take it anymore…" He was almost yelling to no one in particular. "I can't take it anymore…" Kouichi whispered. 

Shining. Metal. Its teeth are threatening, just asking for you to use them. Long and sleek, like his hair, shimmering in the sunlight. _Is this how it's supposed to end? Is it? Is there anything that I have to live for, that doesn't bring me pain? No, this is the right answer._

Inches. Centimeters. Millimeters. 

_Ringing. Are my ears ringing? No, it's not that. It's the telephone. _Kouichi dropped the messenger of death and picked up the small black phone that was sitting on his bedside. "Hello?" He asked softly, as if it was supposed to be secret.

"Kouichi? Is that you?" Kouji's smooth voice echoed a thousand times in Kouichi's mind.

"Yes, it's me." He tried not to stutter, or mumble. Trying to sound fine was hard.

"Hey, Kouichi. Me and some of the guys are going out to a movie, wanna come? I don't really see you much anymore, so I was wondering if you wanted to come…" 

Kouichi smiled a rare smile. "Thank you for saving me, Kouji."

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End file.
